Tafsir and Evil - Part Two
Following the posting of the previous page, a member of the group indicated that while they liked the majority of what was said, nevertheless, they had some problems with the idea that tafsir should only be reserved for reporting on, and discussion of, the historical circumstances surrounding a given instance of Quranic revelation.
This individual felt that a "true tafsir", gives expression to an opening or disclosure which comes to a heart and illumines that heart with respect to some of the spiritual significance of various verses of the Quran. The material below constitutes a response to that person's understanding
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The key to the point being raised, and with which one would not
disagree, lies with the phrase "true tafsir" since this suggests
there are tafsirs that are not true. Indeed, Shaykh Al-Alawi
testifies to this effect when he says: "I thank HIM in that HE never
made our understanding dependent on the understanding of those who
preceded us," and, as well: "And the passing of time and the
recitation of those who recite The Quran will never have an effect on
it, until it appears as if it were coming from the Trusted Spirit, if
not from the Most Merciful HIMSELF."
Obviously, not everyone who comments on the Qur'an is being guided by the Trusted Spirit or the Most Merciful. In such cases, all that is happening, and all that should happen, is that issues concerning the historical contexts through which Revelation arose may be discussed without anyone supposing that anything more than this is being said.
There is another term which may be applicable here and that is "ta'wil". This word is erroneously rendered by some as meaning 'interpretation' but, in actuality, refers to a process in which things, by the Grace of Allah, are taken back to first principles (of a spiritual or metaphysical - that is, beyond the physical - nature) through what is disclosed to one, or another, of a given human being's interior faculties - such as the heart, sirr, ruh, or kafi.
When an individual's interior, spiritual faculties are guided by the
Trusted Spirit or the Most Merciful, then, understanding is
illuminated, and something of this illumination is translated into
the commentary which occurs in conjunction with this or that ayat of
the Qur'an. This is an instance of ta'wil occuring during the
exercise of tafsir and, as such, does not really alter the fact that
tafsir is only about the historical circumstances surrounding the
occasion of Revelation - this added dimension of ta'wil is what makes
a tafsir true and distinguishes such instances from all of the other
instances of tafsir which are not enveloped by barakah.
Because of the foregoing distinction, it is better to limit use of
the term tafsir to just the act of providing information concerning
historical circumstances. When this process is supported by the
presence of Divine assistance such that ta'wil occurs, then,
something else is taking place in the context of tafsir, and it is
not the tafsir, itself, which is true but rather the insight which
gives value added to the historical data - value which goes beyond
that data because it is informed by the Unseen and deals with
different dimensions of the wealth of wisdom contained in the
uncreated Word of God.
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Upon reading the foregoing response, the same individual who originally raised the question about the nature of tafsir replied a second time. Although this individual indicated he accepted that the newest material on tafsir reflected the understanding of the author of the piece, nevertheless, he said he wanted to stick with the idea that tafsir encompassed something more than mere unpacking of the historical context out of which revelation arose.
He went on to provide an excerpt from Shaykh Ahmad al-'Alawi's Al-Bahr Al-Masjur:
"Whoever wants to have tranquility of mind, let him not start this (Tafsir) exegesis until he has passes over all the chapters according to their sequence because it is like a staircase to receiving HIS secrets. And let him tread with good opinion as much as he can. And let him not draw any analogy of what he finds and compare it to what he has found before because it is far from being the same, and because the speech of the soul (ruh) is different from the speech of the Mind. Most of it has come through the Specific Tongue in which we do not have a great deal of activity except as a sort of patronage received from the presence of ALLAH. The meaning here being that this is not from our effort and action, for I am not free of my self (nafs), and from my shortcomings, and I do not forget the presence of the good in it.
(3:180) - And ALLAH is well aware of all that you do.
Then know that that this exegesis (Tafsir) has came to me in this order with the intention that I remind a portion of the Book of ALLAH intended for general purposes. Then we will remind you of what can be extrapolated of its rules, and this is more specific than the first explanations. Then we expand it by indication (ishara) according to the sayings of the people of ALLAH. Then we mention a speech that is more specific than that, referring to it as the tongue of the soul. And you will see these four rivers;
(2:60) - Each group knew its drinking place."
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The response to the foregoing is as follows:
There is nothing in what shaykh Al-Alawi (may Allah be pleased with him) has said which actually is inconsistent with has been said previously with respect to tafsir. The word
"exegesis" is an English rendering of the process of Tafsir.
The shaykh has indicated that the speech of the ruh (which might best be conveyed by the English word 'spirit' rather than soul - although it is all too easy to get hung up in language) is different from that of the mind. He goes on to say: "Most of it has come through the Specific Tongue in which we do not have a great deal of activity except as a sort of patronage received from the presence of ALLAH. The meaning here being that this is not from our effort and action, for I am not free of my self (nafs), and from my shortcomings." In effect, what appears in the context of the tafsir which is offered are Divine illuminations - which means that while engaging in tafsir, something extraordinary happened, and those who follow the instructions of how to engage this may, if God wishes, reap the benefits thereof.
The shaykh also says: "Then know that that this exegesis (Tafsir) has came to me in this order with the intention that I remind a portion of the Book of ALLAH intended for general purposes. Then we will remind you of what can be extrapolated of its rules, and this is more specific than the first explanations. Then we expand it by indication (ishara) according to the sayings of the people of ALLAH. Then we mention a speech that is more specific than that, referring to it as the tongue of the soul." The aspect of the order of things which is intended for "general purposes" is the usual sense of tafsir, and in conjunction with this he speaks about reminding the reader about "what can be extrapolated of its rules" - and, again, this is consistent with the traditional nature of the process of tafsir. Finally, the shaykh indicates that he will augment the usual sense of tafsir with ishara from the sayings of the people of Allah, followed by the insights which come from the tongue of ruh.
None of the foregoing really is at odds with what has been said in a previous posting. Indeed, the shaykh says: "let him [the reader] not draw any analogy of what he finds and compare it to what he has found before because it is far from being the same." What is being offered through the tafsir of the shaykh is not the same as what, traditionally, is offered through the usual practice of tafsir, and the shaykh has made references to these differences in a number of different ways.
If a person wishes to use the word 'tafsir' to refer to the entirety of what shaykh al-Alawi (may Allah be pleased with him) does (or, more accurately, is done through him) in the context of tafsir, then, this is a matter of individual choice. However, the shaykh has given warnings that what is being done through him, by the Grace of Allah, is not the same as what normally happens when people do tafsir.
Unfortunately, all too many people suppose that when they do tafsir, then, this is the same sort of thing as what happens in relation to people of the spiritual stature of shaykh Al-Alawi (may Allah be pleased with him), and as the shaykh indicates, this is simply not the case. In order not to confuse the generality of people, they should know that the usual sense of tafsir is very restricted in what it has to offer - namely, there are limited rules of extrapolation which can be applied to looking at the historical circumstances in which Revelation emerges.
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